


Migraines And Little Ones

by Angelily_Viventis



Series: Alan Rickman x Plus-size reader [22]
Category: Alan Rickman - Fandom
Genre: Age Difference, Community Naps, Daddy Alan, Discipline, Domestic Bliss, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Headaches & Migraines, Hurt/Comfort, London, Lunch, Older Man/Younger Woman, Pain, Playgrounds, Size Difference, Team as Family, parenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:54:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24322369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angelily_Viventis/pseuds/Angelily_Viventis
Summary: While (Y/N) has her monthly migraine attack, Alan has to step up to the plate and take care of Alyson for the day.
Relationships: Alan Rickman/Original Female Character(s), Alan Rickman/Reader
Series: Alan Rickman x Plus-size reader [22]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1729954
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	Migraines And Little Ones

**Author's Note:**

> Please note: these are individual one-shots and function as stand-alone chapters. None of the work in these series follow on each other unless indicated as "Parts".

It's one of the rare days that neither parents have to work today. (Y/N) is on her second week of uni vacation before the new term starts and Alan just returned back from his press tour of Snow Cake which leaves him the next few weeks free.

But of course, life always has to get in the way of things... like today.

It's been precisely a month since (Y/N)'s last severe migraine attack. (Y/N) is known for her high levels of pain tolerance and her usual headaches, which she has to deal with every second day for her whole life so far, is nothing compared to her monthly migraine attacks. This time it's different, though, as she had none of the tell-tale signs leading up to the attack.

She woke up this morning with a sharp pain in the left side of her head, causing her eyes to feel like someone is hammering at the back of them. Her neck feels stiff and her left ear and jaw started paining too, preventing her from falling back to sleep again.

Careful not to wake a sleeping Alan next to her, she decided to get right up and take her usual migraine cocktail - which is basically a hand full of different prescription pain relief tablets, muscle relaxers, and a nausea-prevention pill.

She is usually stubborn and will only take her medication as a last resort. Sometimes Alan has to force her to take it before she passes out from the pain, but today's migraine already started at an eight on (Y/N)'s pain scale, so she doesn't want to take any chances.

She refrains from her morning coffee in fear that the caffeine will anger the headache. She exhales sharply as she knows her whole day is up in shambles. No coffee means that she won't last very long throughout the day, adding to that the cocktail she just had, she will have to lie down in a few hours in order for the medication to take effect. By the time she wakes up it's already going to be sunset which means an entire day has gone wasted.

Her biggest concern, though, is finding a quiet and dark spot in the house where she could rest, given that they have a very loud and very energetic two-year-old in the house. Aly would usually be in daycare when (Y/N) has her migraines which makes resting a breeze for her, but since all three of them will be home today, who knows how her day will turn out.

Alyson is always so happy when she gets to spend a day uninterrupted with both her parents. (Y/N) and Alan both have very busy schedules, leaving only the evenings free for them all to spend quality time together. Which usually just consist of two or three hours of playtime and bath time before Aly needs to go down for the night.

Weekends aren't always free either. Grocery shopping needs to be done, the house needs to be cleaned and sometimes Alan would suggest a family drive into the English countryside which means they spend the majority of their time in the car.

No, today is a rare day and no migraine will ruin that for (Y/N). She decides to pay no attention to the pain, however hard that may be, and soldiers on to make the most of this day for Alyson's sake.

She quickly makes sure to drink two bottles of water in order to hydrate her body and help reduce the shooting pain. As she leans with both her arms against the counter, she stares out at the courtyard instantly regretting it. The bright sunlight shining through from outside makes her eyes water and she hurriedly pulls the cord to close the white wooden blinds, but it's too late - the damage is already done. It feels as if her brain is too big, pushing against her skull. She can practically feel the blood pushing through her narrowed arteries, trying to flow to their respective places. She gently applies pressure to her temples, massaging them, hoping that it will bring her comfort.

An exceptionally cheery, freshly showered, and impeccably dressed Alan walks into the kitchen and up to his wife. He throws an arm around her waist and was about to lean in to kiss her on her head when she slightly pulls away and twists out of his hold, scowling. His cologne might be intoxicating to her on any other day, but today it's way too pungent due to her over-sensitive senses. 

"Why did you pull away?" He asks slightly offended and takes a few timid steps away from her.

"Does my breath smell bad?" He breathes into his hand and smells to check.

"No, I'm sorry. I just..." she sighs. "I have a migraine again," she rubs at her throbbing eyes in frustration.

Alan visibly relaxes his shoulders as he is relieved to hear it's not his fault, at least.

"Come here," he calls her gently, stretching an arm out to her.

She begrudgingly obliges and steps into his open arms. She feels so very irritated right now but there's nothing more she wants than for Alan to hold her.

Research shows that if another person rubs your stomach when you have period pains it could make it go away. That's what (Y/N) wishes would happen to her migraines when Alan holds her. But alas, just resting her head on his shoulder brings her head more discomfort and she steps out of his hold once again.

Alan can immediately see her discomfort and offers to rub her temples for her. She leans her back against his chest while he soothingly massages her affected areas with his supple fingers.

"Have you taken your medication already? I know you try to hold out for as long as possible before taking it, but I think you really-" he asks in hushed tones, careful not to cause her any more discomfort before she cuts him off.

"I took it a few minutes ago already. This time is much worse than all the times before," she answers in a whisper and sighs frustratedly.

"Mummy, Daddy, you're up!" Alyson shouts gleefully as she comes running down the stairs in her footy pajamas while clutching a stuffed Paddington in her tiny arms.

(Y/N) immediately cringes at the sound and clutches at her head.

Alan rushes forward and scoops Aly up in his arms before whispering to her, "Shhhh, Aly-bear. Mummy has a headache, so we have to be very quiet today, okay?"

Alyson turns her head in (Y/N)'s direction and shamefully rests her head on her father's shoulder. 

"I'm sow-ry, Mummy. I be quiet," she whispers timidly to her mother.

(Y/N) feels guilty that Aly has to tone down on her play-day, but she's determined to make it a day to remember even if it kills her. She walks over to her little girl on Alan's hip and places a loving kiss on her forehead while rubbing her back soothingly.

"It's okay, darling. We'll all be really quiet today, okay?" She speaks to her daughter in a hushed tone.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright? Don't you rather want to go lie down until the migraine goes away?" Alan offers softly.

"I'm fine. We'll just limit the fun to indoor activities because I am not doing sunlight today," she offers while rubbing at her eyes again.

She thought about just throwing on a pair of her RayBan sunglasses and treading out in the sun, but with the way she feels and the way she keeps rubbing at her temples, she'll probably end up looking like a hung-over mother incapable of caring for her child.

They both get Alyson dressed before sitting down for breakfast. Alyson has her usual heart-shaped toaster waffle and blueberries while Alan munches on his eggs on toast. The ear-drilling clattering of silverware against the plates is driving (Y/N) up the walls. She really wants to spend time with her family, but at this point, she's trying very hard to control her breathing through her nose in order not to gag at the smell of the food.

"At least have some toast, darling. You need to get something in your body," Alan offers quietly after looking up and seeing her concentrated face.

"No, no. I won't hold anything down. I'll eat something once I feel better," she counteracts with a shake of her hand and takes a sip of her black Rooibos tea instead.

After breakfast the trio took time to play sports games on the Wii, which strained (Y/N) very quickly, and afterward they find themselves in the playroom building a puzzle. Instead of her migraine decreasing due to the medication, it did the exact opposite. Because (Y/N) hasn't had a chance to rest and let the pills take effect, her pain is increasing with every breath and every heartbeat. She's certain her migraine is even worse than this morning, reaching a dangerous nine-point-five on her pain scale.

Alan retrieves a glass of water for his wife from the kitchen and upon re-entering the playroom, catches her with her eyes squeezed shut while clutching her head. He knows she's trying to stay strong for both him and Aly. She never wants to attract attention to herself when she's ill but judging from today's migraine she is probably at her wit's ends right now. He hates to see her in pain like this.

He clears his throat upon approaching her and cocks an eyebrow knowingly at her. Her glazed-over eyes spring open and she feels ashamed at being caught.

"I was just... resting my eyes," she lies as she takes the glass of water from Alan and downs it in one go.

"Don't. Lie. To. Me," he drawls.

"Ala-" she starts while holding her hand up into him.

"I can clearly see you're in pain and your discomfort is making me feel guilty. Please, love, go lie down. The world is not going to fall to pieces just because you took a sick-day. Alyson is content and I can manage her on my own for the rest of the day," he offers sweetly.

A million excuses whizz through her mind of why she needs to stay, but with every beat of her heart her eyes and temples throb. 

_Screw it_ , she ultimately decides and slowly gets up from the couch. Her vision blurs and she has to steady herself against Alan's shoulder to have the dizziness settle. He holds onto the small of her back until she catches her balance. 

Once upstairs (Y/N) changes out of her clothes into comfortable pajamas. She haphazardly places her bottle of water on her bedside table before walking over to the large windows. She takes a peek outside through squinted eyes and she sighs at what a beautiful, rare, sunny day it is in London today. It's a pity she's missing out on it.

 _Oh well_ , she shuts the blinds and pulls the curtains closed, causing the room to go pitch black. She carefully lies down on the bed and adjusts her orthopedic pillow in just the right way so it doesn't cause her neck any more discomfort. The medication causes her body temperature to drop quickly and she pulls the thick comforter all the way until under her chin. The throws her arm over her eyes and almost instantaneously falls asleep.

In order to give his wife some quiet time, Alan lures Alyson out of the house to the garden square across the street before lunch.

"Daddy, ca' Mummy come and play with us?" She whines as she pulls down on his hand while they walk down the busy street.

Alan stops in the middle of the sidewalk and squats in front of his daughter looking softly into her chestnut eyes.

"Darling, Mumma's feeling ill so we'll give her some quiet time at the house, okay?" He says sweetly, but firmly, hoping that she will drop the subject. 

"Okay, Daddy," she looks away timidly.

Alyson enjoys the time out in the garden square while playing on the jungle gym but soon becomes cranky as lunchtime approaches. 

"Nooo! I wanna play, Daddyyy!" Alyson shouts and stomps her feet on the neatly cut grass causing Alan to look at her shocked. 

Alan checks his wristwatch and notices that he's let her play for far too long. They still need to walk back and he still has to prepare her lunch before she can be fed. _I should have planned better!_

He bends down and gently grabs hold of her two tubby hands before saying, "Daddy is very sorry. I know it's not your fault for being cranky - you are just hungry. Let's count to ten and then get some food into you." 

"Ok, doll," he grunts as he lifts an uncooperative Alyson into her booster seat. "Let's get you situated," he says as he straps her in and secures her safely.

He runs around like a maniac in the pristine kitchen trying to warm up her rice, pumpkin, and pureed broccoli while still trying to keep her entertained. Alyson gets restless as she kicks her feet and pulls at the straps. Alan growls frustratingly at himself for not planning his time better.

_How does (Y/N) manage to do all this and keep Aly happy?_

With the three small containers and a plastic spoon in hand, he walks over to her and plops down on the kitchen chair while pulling her seat as far in between his legs as possible so he can get a better reach.

"Uh-hmmm," she groans at her father as he holds the spoon full of pumpkin up to her pursed mouth.

"Alyson, you have to eat. You're hungry," he soothingly says while trying to attempt a spoonful of rice.

"No!" She shouts and crosses her arms over her tiny chest.

"Hey, keep it down, please. What did we discuss earlier?" He asks sternly, but lovingly.

"I want Mumma, Daddy," she says quietly as her bottom lip quivers.

"I know, darling. Finish your lunch and then we can check on Mummy before nap-time," he compromises and she opens her mouth reluctantly to take the spoonful of rice.

After two bites Alyson pulls her head away causing Alan to smear the pureed broccoli all over the side of her cheek.

"Alyson, are you being naughty?" He reprimands her while taking the wet towelette and cleaning her face.

"No! I. Want. Mummy!" She kicks again, accidentally hitting Alan in the thigh, very close to his crown jewels.

"If you do not stop this atrocious behavior right now, you will get a smacking. Is that what you want?" He challenges his carbon copy sternly.

He knows she's just hungry and over-tired, but Alan Rickman didn't raise a brat and Alyson knows her behaviors have consequences no matter how upset she feels.

"No!" She glares at him with piercing eyes, arms still crossed.

"Here, would you like to try another bite of the pumpkin?" He offers her another spoonful patiently.

She slaps at the spoon with her tiny hands causing the pumpkin to spatter all over Alan's white dress shirt and all over the tiled floor. Anger and embarrassment rise in Alan as he gives his daughter a staredown.

_How can I not control my own child??_

"That's it. You know your behavior has consequences and I warned you several times, Missy," he unstraps her from her booster seat and places her down on the floor before lightly giving her buttocks a pat.

Alyson cries out melodramatically as tears stream down her face.

 _Shit! Rickman, you didn't think this through!_ He mentally reprimands himself at causing Alyson to make more noise knowing that his wife is trying to rest upstairs.

He soothes her by gently rubbing her back until she calms down. His heart aches at seeing his little girl in distress, but he knows she needs the discipline. He'll be damned if his child is raised ill-mannered.

After she calms down he picks her up and places her on his knee to face him.

"Are you quite calm?" He drawls.

"Hm-hm," she swallows a hiccuped sob as Alan remains strict eye contact.

"Good. Daddy is very sorry for giving you a smacking, but your behaviour is uncalled for, my sweet. We do not throw food and we do not shout at grown-ups, do you understand?" He asks her softly.

"Yes, Daddy," she says timidly while looking down at the orange pumpkin on his shirt.

He lifts her chin to meet his eyes again before he continues, " Can you apologise to Daddy for causing a mess and for behaving like a bad girl?"

She nods her head before answering, "I sow-ry, Daddy. I pwomise."

Alan was about to say that it's okay before he stops himself.

"It's not okay, but I do accept your apology. Thank you for apologising," he praises as an afterthought before placing a loving kiss on her temple.

"Can we get back to finishing your lunch, then?"

"Me not hungry, Daddy," she says timidly.

"Are you full?" He asks incredulously.

"Yeah, me all full," she says and rubs at her stomach.

For some reason Alan highly doubts that and can only guess that she's holding him to his promise of taking her to her mother after she finishes her lunch.

"Okay, let Daddy clean up your mess first," he sighs as he places her back into her booster seat, this time not buckling the straps. 

He hands her Paddington which keeps her content while he uses the towelette from earlier to wipe up the pumpkin from the tiled floor. He grabs a clean shirt from the laundry room next to the kitchen and quickly changes before throwing his dirty shirt in the laundry basket. 

"You ready for your nap?" He attempts in the hopes that she has forgotten his earlier promise. 

He's not sure how (Y/N) will feel at this point and he feels guilty for wanting to disturb her rest, but if he knows his daughter, it's that she's as determined as her mother and she will persevere until she gets what she wants. 

Alyson looks confused at her father and then draws a frown with her tiny eyebrows.

"Daddy pwomised..." she whines and her bottom lip begins to quiver again.

Alan chuckles to himself knowing that she would not have forgotten something so important to her. 

"Yes, okay. We can go see Mummy, but we have to be very quiet," he picks her up and carries her on his hip upstairs. 

Alan lightly raps on the door before pushing it open slowly. He peeks through and sees his wife still asleep with her arm slung over her eyes. She hasn't changed position since he checked up on her before leaving the house with Alyson.

He walks over to her side of the bed and gently sits down on the edge with Alyson still on his hip. 

(Y/N) stirs awake at as the bed dips. Her eyes immediately land on her husband and daughter. She's confused and her brain is foggy from the medication. She squints her eyes in confusion and looks over at the clock on the bedside table. The actual numbers don't register in her mind and she's not even certain what year it is. 

"Is everything okay?" She asks in a hoarse voice while trying to sit up. 

"Everything's alright, love," Alan rubs her arm soothingly. "Sorry for disturbing you, but your strong-willed daughter wanted to see you before she goes down for her nap." 

He looks at her empathetically with a small smile on his face as she's still confused and groggy. 

She scoffs playfully then adds, "I wonder where she gets that from." 

Alyson looks intently between her parents and waits patiently for their next move. 

(Y/N) stretches out her arms at her daughter causing Alyson's face to light up with delight. She gently lays down on her mother's chest and shuts her eyes closed while still clutching Paddington between their sandwiched bodies.

(Y/N) soothingly plays with Aly's sandy strands of hair. 

"How are you feeling?" Alan asks.

She rubs at her eyes tiredly and lays back against the pillow, "Most of the pain is gone. I just feel exhausted and drained." 

"I can take Aly once she's fallen asleep and then you can continue to rest," he offers sweetly. 

"It's okay, I like the human contact," She chuckles lightly. "Besides, judging from her breathing I think she's already asleep." 

Alan looks down at Alyson to check, "Well, I never... How do you make it look so easy?" 

"They call it _a mother's touch_ ," she playfully replies while stroking Aly's back lightly. 

Alan looks at his wife and daughter in admiration before getting up off the bed, "I'll leave you two to it, then. I'll check up on you in a bit."

"No, wait," she calls softly and gently takes his large hand in hers. "Lie down with me. Please," she almost pleads. "We can have a community nap." 

"Are you sure it's not going to cause you more discomfort, my sweet?" He asks concerned. 

After she shakes her head, Alan kicks off his shoes and softly lies down on the bed next to his wife and sleeping daughter. 

(Y/N) closes her eye and quickly drifts off to sleep as Alan gently strokes her hair before he too falls asleep for the afternoon. 


End file.
